himespau 

The last couple of days I've been stuck eating fast food for dinner. I was surprised to see how far fast food salads have come in the last several years. Still not great and the dressing options leave much to be desired, but it wasn't as bad as I thought.

Mark Stone

Mrs. Tractorlegs and I love the salads at Burger King and Wendy's. The Apple Chicken Cranberry salad at BK is 8 WW points when you choose the grilled chicken option, and it's filling and very flavorful. Also, if you like burgers the Wendy's #1 combo with cheese and with chili instead of fries is just 17 points.

chefisaac

What kinds of salad greens do they use? Man I remember back in the day it was all iceburg.

jerhalco

[QUOTE=tractorlegs;15504622 Also, if you like burgers the Wendy's #1 combo with cheese and with chili instead of fries is just 17 points.[/QUOTE]

Wow that's half my points for a day!

himespau 

Yeah, my problem with their salad is that they don't include dressing in the point totals. Wendy's lowest point salad is like 15 without dressing. McDonald's Grilled Chicken Southwest is like 8 points and delicious, but if you put some dressing on, you're adding another 4 or so points. 12 still isn't bad for a dinner with some unsweetened iced tea, though. Just have to supplement it with fruit when I get home. Arby's salad with roast turkey leaves a lot more to be desired, but again is like 6-7 points before adding dressing. I did like the Burger King salad. Will be glad when the family stuff gets more normal starting this weekend and we are able to cook at home again.

Down one point this week. Had been hoping for 2 so I could reach my first 20 points down, but didn't quite make it. Oh well, there's always next week.

wbuttry

I wanna ask a quick question ok i'm a diabetic plus I have thyroid problems cause I don't have any I weighed 230 3 months ago and I ride my bike almost daily now i'm down to 220 mind you this is in 3 months does my thyroids increase my weight and does insulin turn into fat or what does it do I cant really get a straight answer from my doc and she tells me i'm 75 pounds over weight and I very seldom eat I might eat twice daily breakfast and supper and every thing I eat isn't always healty but my question again does my throids and insulin cause me to gain weight also

islandseas

Have you ever had one of those weeks where you do almost everything right but the scale doesn't show it? In fact it shows a gain. That was me this week. I was up 2.4lbs. I tracked all week including the chocolate eggs. I did four workouts this week which included two long brisk walks, one spinning class and one weights workouts and then my ride on Sunday. I know it's not "real weight" but it's discouraging. Well, it's a new week and I'll continue following the plan. We had to write down one change we would make this week so I commited to at least 30 minutes of activity every day. Hopefully, the heavy rains will ease and some of them can be riding minutes. Have a great week everyone.

Karen

islandseas

I don't anything about the diabetes but I have hypothyroid and take medication for it. It does make my losses slower but they are still there. I have stopped blaming my thyroid on my weight gains because I know people who have the same condition and don't have any problems with their weight. I'm guessing that eating only twice a day isn't great. I would ask my doctor about seeing a dietician or nutritionist that can give you the correct information about your two conditions. Keep riding and try to make healthy choices and you will have success.

Karen

chefisaac

Yes, I have had many of those days!

chefisaac

I dont have much to add to this but what I do know is that you cannot exercise off bad eating habits. There have been many weeks that I will ride 100-200 miles A WEEK and still gain if my eating is not 100%. Its almost 90% what you eat and 10% exercise.

Penny4

Me too! Just over half for me. It's getting harder and harder to eat fast food beyond salad without dressing. Not that this is a bad thing..but when you need something quick, it's there are fewer options.

chefisaac

Great job on you loss.

I might suggest bringing your salad home and then you can make or add your favorite dressing on the salad. Or bring some of you fav. Dressing with you.

I hate fast food salad dressings because they are too high in sweetness and way too many points for the crappy taste they deliver.

chefisaac

Do you have a Salad Works close to you?

chefisaac

Good morning all. Ok I am on the train now with all the chefs to go to Boston. I have packed a lot of snacks for this 5 hour train ride.

vesteroid

why? Isaac, this is not really addressed at you specifically, but rather a general observation. Why do we always feel we need constant food. I see it all around me. I travel for work, and therefore am on the road sometimes weeks at a time. Why do we feel the need to pack a lot of snacks, or really even any snacks for a five hour trip. I see this start with children, I see parents constantly shoving food in toddlers mouths on planes as if thats the magic cure to keep them happy. My own wife and son cant get in a car and drive an hour without food and water.

I know when I am working out of my home or my local office I seem to be hungry at 9 am (I start at 6 am) but when I am on the road where my only food source is to go out, I eat at the hotel at 6:30 and then not till afternoon, then not till say 7pm. Yes occasionally I do get hungry in that period, but I have yet to die, and typically my best weight loss days have come when I am on the road for a week, and been exercising hard.

Really just an observation, but I swear, something in our culture says we need to have constant snacks around us, and I think thats a large part of the problem.

himespau 

Yeah, unfortunately, that wasn't an option with the way family stuff worked last week. But yeah, I do like my own (light) dressings better than most of the options they have at restaurants when they usually have at most a single light option and it's often of a cream based dressing which means that the light version is about the same as a normal vinegrette. This week, however, I hopefully won't be going out at all (at least not stuck with fast food if I do), so it shouldn't be a concern. Plus, now mowing weather is here. That's got to be worth a few more exercise points.

GeoBigJon

Down another 2.5 pounds. WW gave me a warning that I'm loosing too fast, it said I should slow it down and possibly consult a physician. I eat almost all my points every day. I am not starving. I feel better than I have in a long time, my mind is clearer, my legs are hard as rocks, I lift weights a couple times a week, so I'm not sure where the issue lies. I am very movaited to get this done but know its not healthy nor is it safe to drop too fast. I personally feel I was just that out of shape and that changing my lifestyle and eating proper portions of the good foods has put me on an accelerated course early on. I ended up loosing 16 pounds in a month but that being said I cut out all cokes, candy, no breads, only a little raw organic cane sugar in my coffee in the mornings as far as carbs go. No beef, it really tears my stomach up, but I do eat venison, chicken, pork, and turkey. Sea food and fresh water fish are on the menu at least once a week. Lots of fresh veggies, and some fruit. We don't eat out, and if on the rare occasion we have too, we eat lean meats and veggies. So I guess where I'm going with this is it normal to drop fast and the level off into a steady routine? Would this be normal for someone as I have kinda layed out? I am going to make an appointment for some blood work just to see where I stand. I would like input from you guys and ladies that have been down this road. Thanks.

goldfinch

Geo, it kind of depends on how heavy you are to start. Sixteen pounds in one month is not unusual if you are quite heavy. Often the large loss early on is due in part to water weight. If that is the case weight loss likely will slow its pace.

FWIW.

root11

Another weigh in today, only down .6. Last couple weeks have been good so I had a feeling it would be low, but at least it's a loss! Looks like everyone else has been doing pretty well.

Penny4

I fell so far off track this week. W/in tomorrow and I know i will be up by several pounds. I didn't track, didn't measure, ate whenever/whatever i wanted. I was feeling sorry for myself for a rough week at work and a rough week personally.

I do not feel any better after all that eating Need to weigh in tomorrow and just move on. I feel so much better when I follow the plan. Why do I always do this?

islandseas

I know what you mean Penny....for me it's mostly when I'm tired and just don't want to deal with cooking or planning. Or just feeling sorry for myself. We just have pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and get back on track. It's a slow journey but it will be worth it in the end. Have a better week and take care.

Karen

chefisaac

Well Penny I am in the same boat. I have been in the $hits all week. Traveling with 19 other chefs and all the touring, eating, eating, touring, eating, etc. Crazy crazy. I need to work on it for sure. I think I need to go back to no sugar. GRRRRRRR

I did get two work outs in which doesn't mean much in the long haul.

Penny4

Thanks Karen, Chef.
Weigh in this morning was +3 lbs. And you are right Karen, have to keep moving on.
I usually let things like this throw me off, so I am working on not letting that happen.
Chef, you need a new job! Traveling is hard enough, but with a crew of chefs??!! Even harder.

Back to the program people!

goldfinch

I am thinking of joining weight watchers. I really only have a few pounds to lose and I could stay where I am at and be fine. But I find maintenance a struggle. I am thinking group support may be good. Or it might just make me think about food more than I already do. I confess that I do not like the AA model for a number of reasons. +

Questions:

How easy is it to sign up and then go to meeting in any city or town where you happen to be located?

What exactly do they do at meetings?

What is the financial commitment? Can you quit easily if you don't like it?

Penny4

Hi Gold,
I am pretty sure you can go to meetings in any town. I have been to different meetings in my town.
Meetings start with you weighing in. The receptionist will confidentially record your weight.
There is a new topic every week, things like dealing with holidays, or ways to get extra activity in your day. The leader will facilitate the meeting, about 30-45 min. Participants will share their experiences, or ask questions. The leaders only call on people who volunteer so you can just sit and listen if you want. Usually, at the end, the leader will recognize folks who have hit major milestones (10 lbs lost, 20% of your weight lost, etc). You will set a personal goal (which can be changed) and if/when you hi the goal, they will work with you on maint. You still go to meetings for maint, and if you stay at your goal weight, you can become a lifetime member (which means free membership).
Price...can't remember off hand. There is a sign up fee, but check the website, there are usually specials. After that, you can pay month to month membership fee (approx $45/month), which i think is the most cost effective plan. You get access to on line tools, which are pretty good. Recipes, meal plans, articles, weight tracker, food tracker, etc. THe month to month fee makes quitting easy. I started with meetings, and then switched to on line only which is around $120/year i think. The WW app is very easy to use and makes tracking easy (despite my most recent post!)
Meetings will vary by leader and sometimes you need to check out a few to find the right match. SOme meetings are also more popular with stay at home parents, or folks who work during the day, etc, so the group dynamic can vary greatly. I met several folks who I ended up sitting with at every meeting which was nice to have a few extra cheerleaders/support. You might be able to check out a meeting for free.
Let us know if you join!